In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to their own town to register.
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (Luke 2:1-20 NIV)
“Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14).
There’s a song about that. It’s not one of the songs we’re singing tonight. In fact, it’s not a song that I knew growing up, but I’ve been hearing it a lot lately. Have you heard the song, “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day?” It starts like this, “I heard the bells on Christmas Day, their old familiar carols play, and wild and sweet the words repeat, of peace on earth, goodwill to men.” It’s a classic Christmas song about church bells proclaiming peace. Just what we want to hear!
I think that’s what we look for most at Christmas time: Peace. Would you agree? After a year of ups and downs… After a year of heartache and disappointment… After a year of conflict and stress… We crave peace. The feeling that everything is okay. The feeling that conflict is over. The feeling that you can finally breathe a sigh of relief, that you can finally let your guard down, that it’s finally okay to be joyful. Peace. Isn’t that what we’re all looking for at Christmas? Just what the angels announced: “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” “I heard the bells on Christmas Day… peace on earth, goodwill to men.”
But that song—“I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day”—goes on. It actually turns dark. It says, “But in despair I bowed my head: ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said. ‘For hate is strong, and mocks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men.” This is not your average Christmas carol! The church bells are ringing, “Peace, peace, pace,” but that’s not what we see in the world. Instead, hate is strong. In fact, hate mocks the song: “Peace on earth? What a joke!” Isn’t that the truth? Bells ringing out peace, but life mocking: “There is no peace, for hate is strong.”
I wondered when this song was written. Do you know? “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” was a poem written on Christmas Day 1863 by the famous American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Have you heard of him? More importantly, do you know what was going on in America in 1863? The Civil War. In the previous month, Longfellow’s own son had been severely wounded in battle. Can you imagine celebrating Christmas during the Civil War? Bells ringing peace, “but in despair I bowed my head: ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said.”
There’s actually even more to the story. Not only was the Civil War raging. Not only had Longfellow’s son been severely wounded in battle. But just two years earlier, Longfellow’s wife Fanny had burned to death. Her dress caught fire. They both had tried desperately to put it out. But they couldn’t. The next day she died. Henry was so badly burned that he couldn’t attend her funeral. So on Christmas Day 1863, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was a 57-year-old widower with six children. Life mocks the angels’ song. “Peace on earth? No way! Just look around…”
Can you relate? It’s Christmas Eve. The church bells—if we actually had some—are ringing out “Peace on earth.” Is that what you see? Or, “hate is strong and mocks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men.” There sure isn’t peace in Ukraine. Or Gaza. Or Israel. When is war going to spread to other countries? I wouldn’t say there’s peace in America, would you? There’s so much hatred everywhere. On top of that, it seems like every week there’s another mass shooting. More violence. The Christmas story says, “Peace, peace,” and life mocks the song, “Peace? Are you kidding? Where? You still believe that nonsense? There is no peace on earth I said!”
Here’s what makes it worse: It’s one thing to not have peace around the world. It’s another thing to not have peace in your heart. Do you? That’s hard, isn’t it? To be at peace inside? Peace on earth, when you can’t get along with your spouse? Peace on earth, when your children don’t call you? Peace on earth, when depression is always right around the corner? Peace on earth, when you lost that person you loved so much? Peace on earth, when sickness ruins everything for your family? Aren’t the words of that song true? “But in despair I bowed my head: ‘There is no peace on earth,’ I said. ‘For hate is strong, and mocks the song of peace on earth, goodwill to men.”
According to the Bible, there’s a reason why peace is so hard to come by. Know what it is? It’s sin. The most disruptive, devastating force in the world isn’t cancer or a government, it’s sin. Sin leads nations to drop bombs on each other. Sin breaks relationships apart. Sin fills us with pride and selfishness instead of compassion and mercy. Sin separates us from God. Sin weighs down our hearts with guilt and regret. Sin makes us fear what could be coming next, because we know what we deserve. The Christmas bells are ringing, “Peace, peace.” And sin and the devil and hell mock that song: “Peace? What peace? Not for you. Not after what you’ve done. No way!”
Yet, the angels sang, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” What were they talking about? Let’s let them tell us. On Christmas night, the angel gave the reason for peace. It’s this: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Did you hear what truly brings peace? The angel didn’t say, “Every war is over!” Or, “Here is a lot of money!” He said, “A Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”
That little Baby in the manger came to bring us peace. Jesus came to bring peace in a strange way—by dying on the cross. He shed his body and blood to pay for all our sins and reunite us with God our heavenly Father. The Bible declares, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). The peace of Christmas isn’t the absence of war. It’s peace with God! It’s not perfect relationships. It’s knowing that your sins are forgiven, that your guilt is taken away, that you are the child of God. Because of Jesus, you are forgiven. You are loved. You have eternal life through faith in him.
Look at what the message of Jesus did for the shepherds on Christmas night. When the angel of the Lord appeared to them, they were terrified. Why? They were sinful. Angels are perfect. What happens to mice when you turn on the light? They run and hide. We can imagine what those shepherds were thinking, “What did we do? This is the end! What is God going to do to us?” But here’s what they heard: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy.” God hadn’t come to punish them. God had come to save them! So they went and worshipped the baby Jesus.
It’s Jesus who takes away our fears. We have so many fears, don’t we? We fear punishment for what we’ve done. But “the blood of Jesus purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). We fear the future. But God promises, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). We fear being alone. But Jesus says, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). We fear death. But Jesus promises, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die” (John 11:25). This is the peace of Christmas! Peace in our hearts through Jesus.
There was a pastor long ago named John Chrysostom. He was arrested for preaching about Jesus. The queen threatened him to banish him if he wouldn’t stop preaching. But he said, “You can’t banish me, because the whole world is my Father’s house.” “So I will kill you,” said the queen. “No, you can’t,” he said, “because those who believe in Jesus never die.” “Then I will take away all your treasures,” said the queen. “No, you can’t,” he said, “because my treasure is in heaven and my heart is there too.” “Then I will drive you away from your friends and you will have no one left,” she said. “No, you can’t,” he said, “because I have a Friend in heaven from whom you can never separate me. There is nothing you can do to harm me.” What did he have? Peace.
Here’s another example: In 1914, Great Britain and Germany were stuck in the middle of World War I. The Western Front was the last place anyone would look for peace. Except, on Christmas Eve 1914, do you know what happened? The fighting suddenly stopped. No one knows why. The soldiers began singing Christmas carols back and forth. For one day, they put their guns down, came out of the trenches, and played soccer in no man’s land. The next day, the war resumed. How could those soldiers smile in the middle of the war? How could they sing with all that they were suffering? Their peace wasn’t based on their circumstances. Their peace came from Jesus.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow understood that. We haven’t finished his song yet! Even in the middle of the Civil War, even after losing his wife, he knew where to find peace and hope. He wrote, “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: ‘God is not dead, nor does he sleep. The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, goodwill to men.” There was hope! What was the hope? “God is not dead, nor does he sleep.” The peace of Christmas, the peace that Jesus brings, isn’t that everything is going well in your life. It’s that God is in your life. It’s that the greatest war has already been won by Jesus at the cross. You are loved and forgiven and saved.
Friends, the bells are ringing. Can you hear them? There are still wars, and there always will be, but the bells are ringing… Peace on earth. Because you have peace with God. You are forgiven! There are other people who still reject you, but the bells are ringing… Peace on earth. God loves you! He always will. There might be sickness changing all your plans, but the bells are ringing… Peace on earth. Nothing changes what Jesus has done. There might be worries about the future, about money or children or our country or…, but the bells are ringing. Peace on earth… You can trust the One who died for you. “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep: ‘God is not dead, nor does he sleep. The wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, goodwill to men.”
That peace is for you. Those bells are ringing for you! “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.” Do you know what word the angel emphasizes? You. Good news for you. A Savior has been born to you. When all of life seems all wrong, the bells are ringing, “A Savior has been born to you.” When you feel fear and doubt, the bells are ringing, “A Savior has been born to you.” When you see darkness, the bells are ringing, “A Savior has been born to you.” When you’re staring death in the face, the bells are ringing, “A Savior has been born to you.” “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
(To listen to this sermon on my Upside-Down Savior podcast, please click HERE. To watch this sermon on my Upside-Down Savior YouTube channel, please click on the link below.)
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